Mage Trials
by Nukeyaface
Summary: Drumin Fa'losk was a human mage renowned for his skill before a portal he opened "malfuntioned" and sent him on a one way trip to Equestria. Now he must fight to get himself and his apprentice home safely. Rated M for gore, and possible adult themes, but don't get your hopes up!
1. Chapter 1

Heres my first fanfiction! May contain violent themes and... Adult, content. I own none of the mlp fim characters, or the universe they live in

I groan from exertion as magic flows from my hands into the altar. It lacked power because the sun rose, and the moon bearing it's energy fell. I whispered an incantation and my apprentice watched and took notes in amazements. Suddenly, the altar pulsed with an angry purple aura. "My student, take notes. This should not be happening." I called over my shoulder as I try to contain the imperfection. Suddenly the portal I had attempted to rise spewed lightning as a pair of green eyes, and purple trails following them, appeared in the blackened vortex. "Yes..." An eerie voice drawled. "who are you, fell beast, or warring sorcerer?" I called into the portal, while my apprentice drew his wand. "Welcome to Equestria, Drumin Fa'losk." The voice hissed evilly as the portal sucked me in, dragging my sword, spell book, and staff with me.

This was just a teaser for whats to come, PM me if you want an MLP OC of yours included into the story, and I'll see what I can do. See you all next chapter, and remember to follow this story and all that other good stuff. Leave a review, since constructive cristicism is always appreciated


	2. Chapter 2

Hello, and welcome back, to anyone who is reading this. This chapter is much longer than the last, and I'll try to keep them about this length. Enjoy if you like it, don't if you don't.

I awoke in a small cottage outside a forest. I wore the same tunic and cloak from before I was teleported wherever I was. I stroked my short brown beard thoughtfully as I paced around, searching for y things. I heard a knock at the door, which strangely sounded more like two solids, instead of flesh on wood. "Why did you take me to this world, oh demonic spirit?!" I shouted at the door. I heard a shriek and crying behind the door. My remorse led me to open the door to comfort whoever it was, for no demonic soul would be frightened to tears by a shout. I was not prepared for the sight that befell my eyes. A yellow pegasus, like the beasts of myth and fable, crouched cowering in the hallway, crying, covering it's head with it's wing. "What... You do not exist, you are but a story of legend!" I said in disbelief. I saw the creature perk through it's wings, and revealed the most charmingly cute face I'd ever laid eyes upon. "Do not fret, young creature, I meant you no harm. I was frightened, for an evil being brought me to this world, of this I am sure." The pegasus seemed to calm down slightly, as it had stopped it's bawling, and stood to look at me. It was absolutely fascinating, how surprisingly humanlike the creature's face was, and how unlike my horse in the stables back home. It was only about the size of a german shepherd, only to the heigh of my lowest rib bones at the tips of it's ears. It's wings were small, seemingly too small for sustained flight. It had a long pink mane, that covered one of it's eyes. The feminine coloration suggested to me that it was female. It looked at me curiously, like it didn't understand my words. I used a spell of tongues, which gives me the power to speak to any sentient being, elves, man, dwarves, and hopefully this little creature. "Do you understand me now, little one?" I asked it. It's eyes widened and took to flight, hovering just above my head. "You can speak? Oh my, this is strange, I've never met an animal like you before." The creature's sweet voice destroyed all traces of suspicion that I had withheld that this beast meant harm. "An animal, I am not. I am a man, and you are, for sure, the animal among us." The little pegasus looked carefully into my eyes, lifting a lock of hair out of the way with it's hoof. "You're a ,'Man'?" She asked me timidly, while continuing her examination of me. "Well, more specifically, I am called Drumin Fa'losk, a sorcerer. One who practices the art of magic." The pegasus' ears lifted when I said magic. "Ooohhh" is cooed. "Twilight will definitely want to see you, little one" I fumed as the pegasus pulled me alongside her as she left the cottage and followed a path leading to a small village, similar to my home village. As we passed by, I began to realize who was the animal here. Many more pegasi clouded the sky's, moving clouds throughout the horizon. Their was simple ponies, who pulled carts and tended gardens, and their was the legendary unicorn, many of whom were enjoying a late afternoon luncheon. "What is this world, yellow hued pegasus?" I asked the one who dragged me onward to a large tree with windows and balcony's. "you're in a land called Equestria. If it isn't too much to ask of you, why don't you know that? A smart animal like you should know what names are, like anypony." Anypony? I vaguely understood the translation between anyone, and anypony. "And what, pray you tell me, is your name?" I asked the pegasus as she pulled to a stop in from of the tree-house. A sign hung next to a short door, which said something in a dialect I did not recognize. "I'm FlutterShy, and you're about to meet an alicorn named Twilight Sparkle." She beamed sweetly at me before rapping away at the door with her solid hoof. A purple alicorn stepped out, with a small fire-serpent close behind her. I yelled in terror at the wyrm and began to chant a summoning. The alicorn, Twilight Sparkle, emitted a purple aura from her horn, which silenced my chanting. I had hoped to summon an earth golem, impervious to the fire-drakes heat, to destroy the creature, but Twilisht Sparkle would have none of it. FlutterShy and Twilight Sparkle looked at each other questioningly before speaking. "I found him, in the princess' old castle, when I was looking for Angel. I don't know what he is, since I've never seen anything like him before." Twilight nodded thoughtfully. "Does it speak?" She asked quickly. The purple one(I assume to be a female as well), noticed my intent listening. "I don't know what he normally speaks, he screeched at me in a language I've never heard of, but then waved his fore-legs around, and spoke in Equestrian to me." Twilight nodded. The wyrm looked curious and began to write! He wrote with a quill on a script of parchment, in the same strange runes from the sign. I tried to yell, but the magic restraining me from speaking was too powerful to resist through mentally activated spells. "Spike, send your notes to the princess, she'll want to know what it is as much as we do." Twilight turned to me and relinquished her silencing spell. "Creature, what are you?" She deadpanned. I pointed quiveringly to the little dragon, who lifted an eyebrow at my antics. "The... D-D-Dragon!" I yelled. I turned run but magic held me in place mid-stride. "Yes, Spike's a dragon, we know that. What are YOU? Do you even understand Equestrian, or just speak it?" Twilight seemed to grow impatient with my panicking. FlutterShy clarified quickly. "Oh yes. He understands you. He talked with me on the way here." Twilight nodded to Spike to continue taking notes. "So," she breathed exasperatedly. "What are you, and how did you get here?" I tried to maintain composure while being suspended in midair an being gazed upon intensely by three supposedly mythical beasts. "I am what is called a Human." I rasped to the purple Alicorn. Her eyes widened, and the dragon looked up from his notes, still scribbling away on the parchment. "I came from a land called Earth, where my kind live alongside many creatures, but you are not among them. We war with orcs, goblins, and trolls, draw swords with elves, hobbits, and dwarves, but your kind's are all only stories." They all looked confused at my speech. "Where is Earth?" Twilight asked. "I do not know. Earth could be across the cosmos, for I came here through a portal I opened, that became corrupted by hell spawn." Twilight gasped and FlutterShy shrieked and hid under a table inside the house. "H-H-Hell sp-p-pawn?" FlutterShy looked around frantically for any demons that might come from the sky. "Yes" I said to her. I turned to her and began to tell my tale. "This portal of mine, it was made to head into the dwarven realm, as we don't see much trade with them, and humans need their mineral rich deposits of iron. But something went terribly wrong. The portal began to blacken and spark, and a pair of green eyes stared at me. It told me and my apprentice welcome to Equestria. It knew my name" I finished and Twilight galloped away into the tree. Fluttershy crawled out from under her table and beckoned for me to follow with her hoof. I entered the cramped building, which seemed to be a small personal library. Twilight flew through the top shelves until pulling a book out of it's place and onto the table. She flipped it open, and it seemed to be a journal still in that scratchy language. "This here is an account my friends and I wrote of our adventures in the crystal empire. Green eyes, you said?" I nodded and she flipped to another page, where a picture of a shade with glowing green eyes and purple trails was drawn, exactly like the one that brought me here. "That Shade, it brought me here!" I jabbed my finger at the drawing, anger flaring within me. "I don't know what a Shade is, but that is King Sombra, a corrupted unicorn pony who was defeated by my friends and I almost a year ago." I shook my head slowly and sadly. "My deepest sympathies for the friends you lost to such a foul beast. I have seen a shade before, it destroyed the minds of the mortal companions of mine. A knight, he stabbed his brother in the throat, because the shade corrupted his mind." FlutterShy turned green and hobbled towards the door. "I-I-I think you have this handled Twilight. I'll leave now, see you both later!" FlutterShy galloped out the door and slammed it behind her. Twilight looked slightly green herself , but regained her composure. "W-why no, no one died, my brother fended him off and we destroyed him with the crystal heart." I stroke my beard thoughtfully. "A crystal heart. Tell me, was their anything peculiar about the residents of the crystal empire?" I asked and Twilight flipped to another page. On the page, was a drawing of a sparkling pony with crystalline patterns and a slightly clear hue. "Ahhh, a catalyst. Shades hate anything warm and happy, in this case, the enchanted ponies emitted love to the catalyst, which repelled the shade." Twilight looked unimpressed at my conclusion. "Yes, it didn't matter why it destroyed Sombra, only that it did." I clicked my tongue against the roof o my mouth and waved my finger in the air. "No you didn't. The shade, was it sucked into a vortex?" Twilight nodded and let me continue. "Then it was a classic ploy many magic bearing beasts use to fake it's damnation to hell." Twilight looked unconvinced. "I don't know-" I quickly Interrupted before she could continue. "Now, let me demonstrate." I flexed my arms and waved them around in an arc, sending magic flowing from my spirit. I drew a knife and cut my hand while magic flowed through it. The blood dripped to the floor, where it rolled around the floor, and took shape. A small creature the size of a money pouch floated above Twilight's head, and shot dark magic at me. I shot it with fireball and it began to suck into a vortex created out of nowhere. I then clamped my hands around it, blood squirting around my hands, both from the blood-borne imp and from the cut on my hand. "Now it is ACTUALLY dead." I used magic to seal the wound in my hand as Twilight twitched in amazement. "What magic is this? How did you..." She trailed off and I only chuckled. "That was not alive, it was only a autonomous creature, it was not sentient like you or I. It knew only death, and ways to deal it." Twilight looked ashamed of her lack of knowledge of such things, considering she seemed very scholarly and magically adept. I did not take her lack of knowledge as stupidity, just ignorance on the nature of shades and other ghostly spirits, for it seemed Equestria's enemies lacked any magic that Equestrians don't have themselves. Twilight seemed to trust me an awful lot, considering to her I was a creature from another planet who suddenly started talking like I knew more about her world than she did. "My apologies if I may have seemed very demanding of your attention, it's just I have seen shades kill many men, yet I still don't know quite how to kill it." Twilight smiled and put a hoof on my shoulder. "It's fine, I don't mind." Feeling reassured, I followed Twilight out to meet her friends and discuss what needed to be done.

Well, this has been fun so far, feel free to pm me if you want an OC in the story, just give me a name, general physical description, occupation, and anything else you feel that would help me to make the character the way you want it. Leave a review, for constructive criticism is always appreciated.


	3. Chapter 3

Hello! Welcome back to Drumin Fa'losk' story. Here we'll meet Ebon. Remember, if you want a pony OC of yours in the story, PM me and give a name, description, and anything I should know to make the character how you want it made. Remember though, these OC's probably won't be a main role!

Ebon gasped in horror as his master was sucked into the vortex. He screamed in terror and fired a magical blast of purple energy into the portal. The eyes reappeared again and they shook up and down as an evil laugh filled the tower. "You can't kill me, little elf, you are only a youngling, and I am a spirit." Ebon trembled and turned to run, his long white silk robes flowing in the wind. "Have fun, little Ebon." The voice pounded inside Ebon' head, right between his pointy ears. He felt something grab onto his robes and drag him to the ground. It pulled on him, dragging him up the stairs of the tall stone tower, to the portal on the roof. "NOOOOOOOO!" Ebon screamed, sending flame in all directions, trying desperately to ward away his attacker. None of his attempts were successful, and only made him tire. As an elf, he had much more magical capabilities than normal man, but his endurance as an inexperienced apprentice was pathetic to the laughing spirit that was his captor. He felt rain begin to drop as the portal enveloped him.

Ebon awoke lying on his back in the mid-afternoon, several hours after the portal was opened, right at dawn. Magic was allowed greater flow at dawn and dusk, when the powers of the sun and the moon were both at their weakest, allowing magic more ability to concentrate and move. Ebon sat up and scanned his surroundings. He was in a ruins, with partially destroyed tapestries of the sun and the moon. They were surrounded by two alicorns, the holy beasts of the elves. They were in the shape of the human orientals symbol, the yin-yang. Vines grew over the white alicorn, preparing to expand to the blue one. The high roof was barely intact, the supports straining under the weight of time and the solid stone ceiling. Ebon walked down a dusty red carpet and followed a wooden bridge into a forest. The forest was wild and untamed. It was thick with vines and fern growth. Ebon took the opportunity to draw magic from the plants, taking only enough to weaken the plants, but not to damage them. Ebon felt each and every plant greet him, and offer a portion of their life force. Ebon disagreed, and let them live as they were, except a little borrowed energy. He had often noticed plants communicating with him, and he was unsure how and why. His training under Drumin Fa'losk taught him elemental magic, not natural magic, yet he always felt a connection to any part of nature, much more than the sun, the moon, the earth, or any other elemental forms of magic. He continued through the forest for an hour or so until he entered a clearing with a fallen tree in the middle. Ebon clambered aboard the stump and spun in a circle slowly, deciding how to proceed. He saw a small pocket of light from a meadow. Ebon jumped down from the stump and felt a fast breeze above him. He looked up just in time to see a large wooden form flash over his head. It landed several meters in front of him, and bared it's stick fangs. It was the shape of a timber wolf, like the ones that orcs rode into battle back home. It howled and charged forward, teeth gnashing together, sending splinters and sawdust everywhere. Ebon reflectively drew his wand and hit it with a magic blast. It barked and stopped as parts of it's conjoined body of branches fell away. I howled again with more urgency, and backed away a meter. It looked around and two more of them burst through the undergrowth. They were a little smaller than the original one, who seemed to be the leader. Ebon's eyes widened as the leader ran forward and the other two came around to flank him. Ebon felt himself overwhelmed by fear, and suddenly something amazing happened. He shrank quickly and his arms changed shape. They began to grow feathers as his feet grew talons grew scaly. He reflexively stowed his clothes and his wand into the spirit-realm and his jaw and skull shrank and grew longer, until a solid beak took form. His spine changed posture and he shrieked aloud like a bird. His ears shrank and two feathery plumes sprouted above his ears. His skull stretched to fit two enlarging eyes. As a Great Horned Owl, Ebon immediately took flight, just above the leader of the wooden creatures. He cawed and streaked through the sky uneasily, his large eyes taking in too much sunlight for comfort. He reached the meadow and saw the creatures giving chase to him below. They gave up soon after Ebon left the meadow and flew away following a path. He saw a small village up ahead, and much to his amazement, it was inhabited by brightly colored horses. He landed for a closer look on a thatched rooftop and dodged a light blue one fly by with diminutive wings. He looked across road into a square, where Ebon's master Drumin Fa'losk was talking with one purple unicorn in a strange language. Ebon took off and flew into a back corner, where he changed form again, retrieved his clothes and wand, and stepped out into the sunlight.

Wow, their is much more to Ebon than meets the eye. Constructive criticism is always appreciated, so don't be afraid to help me out! Leave a review, and tell anyone who will listen about my story. Thanks to everyone who has read my stuff, I'm flattered anyone thinks my writing worthwhile. See you all in the next chapter!


	4. Getting aquainted

div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 17px; text-align: left; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469);"I exited the tree with Twilight and was led by her to the obvious town square was. There, I saw a blue pegasus, a white unicorn, Fluttershy, an orange pony, and a pink pony going insane bouncing up and down. Twilight greeted them all kindly before turning around to me. "Girls, this is Drumin Fa'losk. He is a human." The blue pony flew in close and examined me closely. "A what now?" The orange pony questioned as she joined the blue pony in examining me. "He can speak like us, and he is very intelligent." Twilight added as Fluttershy whispered her hello to me. "Hello, little ones, what are your names?" I asked tentatively. The blue pony flew up and looked into my eyes suspiciously. "Why do YOU wanna know?" She said accusingly. The white unicorn brushed the blue pegasus out of the way. "I am Rarity, the most accomplished fashionista in ALL of Equestria!" She said, her proper accent reminding me of myself and the elvish accent when they speak human. Rarity tossed her long purple hair around, trying to look extravagant, and accomplished no more than to annoy me. "Please, Ms. Rarity, do not waste your time with showing off." I said tersely as I turned to the orange pony. She stepped up and shook my hand with her hoof. "Well howdy do, Mr! I'm AppleJack, and that there is RainbowDash," she said gesturing to the blue pegasus buzzing around me. "She don't take kindly to strangers all that much" That left only the pink pony, who was bouncing around cheering and singing loudly. "OH BOY, OH BOY! I MADE A FRIEND!" She shrieked before Twilight cleared her throat loudly. The pink one smiled and bounced up to my height." HII'MPINKIEPIE!" She crammed all the words out as our eyes were level with each other. Pinkie Pie continued to laugh and bounce as Twilight gathered everyone else's attention. "Well girls, I have brought you all her today to-" "HAVE A SLUMBER PARTY?!" Pinkie shrieked as everyone rolled their eyes. "No, Pinkie. I've gathered you all here today to discuss King Sombra." Everyone looked confused, save Twilight and I. "Yeah, we're listening." RainbowDash kicked back in the air above, seeming to listen while taking a nap. "Well, I have reason to believe he's back." Everyone muttered amongst themselves and Twilight paused until their was silence. "Our friend here Drumin Fa'losk was brought to this world from another world called Earth. He created a portal that went wrong, and we think Sombra was behind it." Rarity shook her head. "Darling, don't you remember? We destroyed him! And why would he even bother to bring Drumin Fa'losk to Equestria?" Twilight looked at me for an answer. "I do not know why this, King Sombra, brought me to this place. And I know what I saw. Green eyes with purple trails, just like in your book Twilight." No one seemed to believe what Twilight and I were saying, except FlutterShy. She looked scared and needy,like she wanted to be held and comforted. "Do not make me demonstrate again Twilight, I ask of you." Twilight nodded to me and took over the conversation. "Drumin Fa'losk here told me that creatures like King Sombra live in his world, and what we did with the crystal heart, only repelled him and negated his evil energy. He feinted his own death to give him time." RainbowDash opened her eyes and looked down at Twilight. "For what?" She asked curiously. "I don't know. Probably another try to take over the crystal empire." As Twilight and the others began to discus where he could be, I felt the presence of someone I thought was back home. I looked to a rooftop and saw an owl perched on the beam. It took to wing and flew to an alleyway. I prepared myself for an earth spell to crush it when Ebon walked out of the alley, dressed as he always did. "Ebon!" I called to him and ran to him. "Fash dien mildec Drumin Fa'losk!" He called to me in elvish. I tapped his throat kindly and he produced a gift of tongues tongues spell. It flew around in an arc between his hands before enveloping him. "Hello, master!" He said in Equestrian. "My pupil, why did you come through the portal! You should have ran, you fool!" I scolded him. He looked at the ground beneath us and sighed. "I was sucked in by a spirit!" He retorted defensively. "I know, Ebon, I know." I took his hand and led him to the six ponies in deep conversation. I felt I needed their attention, so I held my hands up to the air. Magic began to flow through the air, struggling against the sun's rays to maintain it's shape. It stopped above the ponies heads, who all looked at it in awe. I guided their gaze over to me and made the magic explode in a cloud of purple vapor. Everyone snapped out of their stupor and looked at me intently. "Friends, I'd like to introduce you all to my student, Ebon." Everyone looked shocked to see another humanoid here. Twilight drew a notepad from her saddle bags and took notes furiously. "Do all adolescent humans have pointy ears?" She asked as she scribbled a drawing of Ebon onto her notepad. "No, he is an elf. A youngling, as he is though. His acute magical capabilities, his eternal life, and his ears make him different than humans." Twilight gasped loudly and squealed. She flew up into Ebons face and began to question him. "Oh, my gosh, oh my gosh! You have eternal life?!" She said, preparing her notepad. "Not exactly, I just do not age or grow sick." Twilight squinted at him questioningly. "Then when you age, you'll still be an adolescent, or will you appear old, but not die?" Ebon looked around at all the ponies looking at him questionably. FlutterShy was in awe of meeting another "animal". Everyone else seemed friendly but slightly wary of Ebon." Master, is it too late to ask a question?" I shook my head no and leaned down to his height. "What is it you ask of me, young Ebon?" Ebon looked around for a second and whispered in my ear," What in all of Hades is going on here? What are these mythological creatures doing here on Earth, sentient, no less!" I smiled and waved away the question. "An accident with the portal, nothing more. All you need to know at this time is that these creatures are to be trusted wholeheartedly. Is that understood?" I looked into his eyes, waiting for an answer. "Of course Master." He nodded and walked around me to meet "everypony". Everyone introduced themselves in turn, except FlutterShy. She blushed and knelt down slowly. Ebon failed to understand her shyness to him, and turned to Twilight curiously. "Is she a mute?" He whispered into Twilight's ear. Twilight wrinkled her nose in disgust an took of step back. "Of course not, she's just shy, thats all. Now that she knows you are both like us she isn't treating you like an animal." I raised both eyebrows cautioning Ebon to not displease our caretakers. He nodded quickly and walked over to FlutterShy. "Hello, friend. My name is Ebon." He said. Fluttershy looked up from the ground slightly. "What's your name, Friend?" Ebon said soothingly raising his hand in front of his face, palm facing outward. "What is he doing?" Twilight opened her notebook and flipped to an empty page. "It's a traditional Elvish sign of peace and friendship. It is rarely used by anyone other than rulers, family, and lifelong friends. The receiver returns the feeling by sliding their hand-err, hoof, across the givers palm." I whispered to her, while she copied what I said word for word, or at least I'd assume so,I still didn't read Equestrian. FlutterShy hear what I said and blushed even deeper and hesitantly raised her hoof to slide it quivering across Ebon's hand. Ebon smile toothily, revealing his straight white teeth, and her rushed her, dragging her into a hug. FlutterShy's eyes popped open and she shrieked, flying two meters or so into the air, barely dragging poor Ebon off the ground. FlutterShy realized what she did and zipped down and landed Ebon safely. "I'm sorry." She whispered just within earshot. "I didn't want to hurt anypony, you just really scared me." She crammed the last sentence out of her mouth as quickly as she could, just barely keeping it understandable. FlutterShy looked at all the strange looks she was receiving and flew away crying softly to herself. "I'll go after her, everpony else, fill in Ebon and begin planning the expedition." Everyone waved goodbye to Twilight as she spread her wings and flew away in FlutterShy's direction. /div  
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div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 17px; text-align: left; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469);" Twilight/div  
div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 17px; text-align: left; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469);" /div  
div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 17px; text-align: left; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469);"I flew after FlutterShy, easily catching up to her when she slipped into her cottage, still weeping sorrowfully. I followed her inside and she spun around hearing me enter. "T-T-Twilight?" She whimpered softly as Angel Bunny bounced into the room from the upstairs bedroom. FlutterShy draped herself over her green couch and continued to cry. "FlutterShy, what's wrong? He didn't scare you that bad, did he?" I rubbed her shoulders soothingly with a hoof. It seemed to calm her down enough to explain. "I-I-I was so scared that I'd ruined everything, I just didn't know what to do, oh-" I cut off her rambling kind of rudely, but I was very confused as to what she had "ruined", I couldn't contain my lack of patience. "You didn't ruin anything, he just hugged you, and you are a little jumpy to strangers, so what?" Angel Bunny took FlutterShy's current weakness as an opportunity to raid FlutterShy's pantry for any food. "Oh yes I did! I ruined any chance of me being with-" she stopped herself when she realized she said too much. My eyes widened when I understood what she meant. "You mean, you want to be with-" /div  
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div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 17px; text-align: left; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469);""And because you-" /div  
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div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 17px; text-align: left; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469);""You think he won't-" /div  
div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 17px; text-align: left; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469);""Well, yes" /div  
div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 17px; text-align: left; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469);"I sighed and started to laugh loudly. FlutterShy wanted to date an adolescent, ish (I calculated that if his age was infinite, then his current age was approximately 395 years old, given elves aged slowly and reached physical and sexual maturity at the age of 500.) elf from another world, and she thought her jumpiness would ruin anything they might establish together. "What's so funny? Please don't laugh at me." She pleaded and clutched my foreleg, squeezing the life out of it. "I'm not laughing at you, I'm laughing because you thought your shyness would get between you two! If you want him, go for it! You're shyness is cute, it doesn't ruin anything. If he likes you back, he will see that you're much more than shy." FlutterShy looked slightly encouraged by the news, and let go of my leg slowly. "S-So what is I can't talk to him about my feelings? H-He wouldn't like m-m-me to be weak." I shook my head and held her on the shoulder. "You're not weak. Don't you remember how you faced down the dragon, and sang to everyone when big mac needed you? That isn't the signs of a weak pony." FlutterShy whimpered adorably. I felt so sad for her, I gave her a tight hug. She returned the sentiments while crying on my shoulder. "What if he doesn't love me back?" /div  
div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 17px; text-align: left; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469);" /div  
div style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 17px; text-align: left; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.296875); -webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.230469); -webkit-composition-frame-color: rgba(77, 128, 180, 0.230469);"Hooray for apparently useless love interests! Flash Sentry got nothin' on this! Anyway, leave a PM if you want an OC in the story, just remember to give me their name, background, occupation, anything else I might need to make your characters the way you want them made. Leave a review, constructive criticism is always appreciated, and follow me and this story if you want to see more!/div 


	5. The Game Plan

Hey everyone! First of all, I'd like to apologize for my infrequent updates, I really can't help it, because my schedule is very erratic and being in middle school, I haven't the time to do much writing anyway without all of my various extra-curricular activities. My plan is to update at LEAST once a week for as long as this story continues (I have finally set up the end of the plot line). I'd also like to thank anyone who has every shown support(you know who you are) to my story! The OC submissions are still greatly appreciated, but try to remember to leave a description of your OC, meaning Name, species, cutie mark, talent, occupation, personality, and any other things you think are worth noting . Follow and fav if you like my story, if you don't, leave a review, constructive criticism is always appreciated, no matter how seemingly cruel.

"So, whats the game plan?" RainbowDash landed beside Ebon and I. "First of all, we need to find King Sombra. Does anyone have any ideas where he could hide?" I turned to all the pony's present. Rarity still seemed a little annoyed at my introduction, but she spoke anyway. "Well I haven't the slightest idea as to where he could be, but I might know where to start." She looked proud of herself as everyone gathered around her. "Well, Sombra is said to have became, well, Sombra, somewhere in the frozen North, somewhere near the Crystal empire. That is a good to start as any." I nodded thoughtfully, plans already swirling through my mind at an alarming rate. "Many thanks, my friend. We shall start there, and if we cannot find him there, then we will talk to the crystal pony's in the empire, see if they know anything about Sombra that we might not." AppleJack took the floor for a moment, staring at me questioningly. "What about the Elements of Harmony? Should we bring 'em just in case?" I had never heard of such things. I raised my eyebrow at her curiously. "The elements of harmony? What is that?" I asked. "They are these wonderful things that we have used in the past to banish Nightmare Moon and turn Discord to stone. They are the most powerful weapons in all of Equestria!" Ebon rolled his eyes secretly. "Why haven't you used these weapons against Sombra already?!" AppleJack turned to look at Ebon. "Look sugarcube, we thought he was killed! Why would we go huntin' down someone who was supposed to be dead?" Rarity stepped in front of Applejack to get Ebon's attention. "Twilight told us the only way to defeat Sombra was to use the power of the crystal heart, so the elements of harmony won't work." Ebon raised both eyebrows questioningly. "The crystal heart didn't destroy or banish him, it only repelled him into hiding." Ebon peered into my eyes, his eyes blank of any expression. "What ACTUALLY will destroy him, Master?" I didn't realize I had been addressed at first, so I continued to plan for the expedition we needed to partake in. When Ebon repeated the question, I snapped out of my thoughts and stare into everyone's eyes in turn grimly. "Alas, the only way to completely destroy a shade, and actually have it relinquish any magic or powers it stole from it's hosts, is to pierce it's heart while it is partaking in a physical form. Unfortunately, that will kill the host, most likely, unless it is using it's own physical form. But with the restorative powers of your magic's, then their shouldn't be a problem in losing the host." RainbowDash flew up to eye level with me and raised her eyebrow, looking confused. "A... Host?" She asked, confusion riddled into her tone of voice. "A host, a person, or in your cases, pony, a shade possess's to gain control over the host's power or as a disguise." The 4 pony's around me gasped in unison. Pinkie had been surprisingly quiet this whole conversation, but had finally begun to show her usual hyper attitude again. I still to this day do not know why she seemed somber and quiet during the first few moments of our discussion. She looked very scared from the news I delivered, and her tail began to twitch nervously. Everyone ran for cover except Ebon and I, who looked at each other questioningly. Suddenly, out of nowhere, I sensed something falling from above. I reflexively caught it mid-fall with my magic and gently lowered it to the ground. It was a squirming, bronze colored pegasus. It was a stallion with a long (for a male) unkempt mane, and a pair of goggles strapped onto his forehead. He wore a sooty apron with an assortment of tools in the pockets. He began to panic upon seeing me, flipping down his goggles and activating them with an increasingly high pitched whine emanating from them. He drew a long saber and slashed at the magic restraining his antics from being dangerous. "Leggo ah me, ye crazy monkey!" He screamed in a light slur, dragging out and combining some of his words. All the pony's galloped to his side, restraining him an allowing me to release my magical restraints. He calmed down after seeing the pony's surrounding him. "The... Thing... What... Is... That..." He panted between gasps of air. "Iron Rust, stop this barbaric act of violence this instant! Drumin Fa'losk is a friend, not some monkey set out to kill you!" Rarity shook Iron Rust firmly. Iron Rust stood shakily and flicked off his goggles and slid them off his eyes, revealing his sad amber hued pupils. "I'm sorry, I thought ye were some kinda crazy animal!" He laughed while both Ebon and I shared a look. "The feelings mutual, my friend." I replied warmly and shook his hoof. "So, why did you crash out of the sky?" I asked him, he looked at everyone's questioning gazes sheepishly. He recomposed himself before gathering some fallen tools from the ground where they fell in the initial struggle. "I thought I saw something flying towards me, and I kinda panicked." Everyone rolled their eyes, save ebon and I. Ebon walked close the the tall, slender stallion and began to examine the goggles on his forehead. "Wow, Iron Rust, where did you get those?" Ebon was awe-struck by the complex and almost alien-like machinery that encompassed the large glass chambers. " I made 'em myself. Nothin' else like 'em in the world." He beamed and took them off to show Ebon. Ebon turned it on with a switch on the side and peered into the glass. He saw on the outside of the strap, was several switches. He flipped them one at any time, his mouth gaping open every time he flipped a switch and closed the other one. "Real cool, aren't they? You can see things nopony else can! Heat, darkness, underwater, ultraviolet, even sound! I'm workin' on a modification to let it see through walls, but Octavia doesn't want me peeping at 'er showerin'!" He lifted his muzzle up to the sky and laughed loudly, his booming laugh filling the air. "Oh please! Octy would love the attention, if you know what I mean!" RainbowDash began to roll across the green earth, laughing until the point of tearful hysterics. Iron Rust toppled over and rolled alongside RainbowDash, weeping between each piece of laughter. Everypony else snickered a little, save Ebon and I, of course. Iron Rust slowed his breathing and flew a little flutter, landing on his feet again. "Well, it's nice meetin' you two, Drumin Fa'losk and little Ebon. You haven't talked much have you?" Ebon shook his head. I rolled my eyes secretly. Whenever he admired someone he just met, or was an acquaintance with, he would be silent and proud, trying to act nobler and greater than he really was. Iron Rust prepared to take of before I motioned for him to stay for a little while. He walked back to us, and sat down next to RainbowDash, who was huffing and puffing on the ground. "What can I do for ye then? You need my presence for somethin'?" He asked openly. "Why yes, I was planning an expedition to the Frozen north, in a search of a very dangerous creature that we need to destroy. I was wondering if you wouldn't mind joining our little party? I assume you will want money, and I will procure some in due time to pay you all." I motioned to everyone present. They all looked startled by my sudden and completely vetoed notion of an expedition to the Frozen North. Iron Rust' eyes gleamed eagerly with a look of want which I assume was either want of money or want of adventure. "Why? What do ya plan on doin' with me?" He asked, barely containing his obvious excitement. I smirked at his demeanor, which had transitioned to neutrally friendly to absolutely vibrated with excitement. I knew he already wanted to go, but he also didn't want to get in over his head. Good. Rationality is a must for any to-be adventurers. "Well, we might need those goggles of yours, and you seem rather unwilling to part with them." He smiled fondly, looking upwards onto the glass instruments on his forehead. "And you seem in adequate shape for reconnoissance, and any combat we may have to endure. Tell me, how fast are you, by hoof and by wing?" Iron Rust' face changed once again, this time to a look of longing, he wasn't sure if his physical fitness would be up to par. "Well," he began sadly. "I got really long legs, so I can't be that slow, and my wings are unmatched!" He spread his wings out above his back proudly, showing off their muscle and length. "Except for me, idiot!" RainbowDash sneered cheekily, causing Iron Rust to frown and lay his wings to rest. "Well, yeah. And the wonderbolts are all faster than me. But no one else!" He looked at me with a cocky smile on his face, making joking defiant glare stand out even more. "Well good, I'd say you are perfect to join me on this expedition, as long as you're willing, of course." He nodded and silently took flight towards the town. "And you four, I assume you all want to come with, yes?" I turned to the four pony's expectantly. They all cheered their respective agreements, from AppleJacks' "let's do it, yall!" To Raritys', "of course I will, darling!" Ebon waved his fists in the air excitedly while chanting a spell. Suddenly, several large arcs of fire flew upwards, converging on the circle of friends before me. The fire conjoined and turned to pure essence, raining down upon the pony's like golden droplets, where they were absorbed by the four pony's subconsciously. "Let me reiterate!" I used a spell to deepen and amplify my voice, silencing their chatter. "We are going to the frozen North! I do not know where this is at the moment, but I assume that it is of arctic temperatures! Prepare for this as you see fit, but I will PERSONALLY inspect everyone, ugh, EVERYPONYS equipment before we leave this town! And if you think you can survive a place like that with nothing but a hat, I will make you wear that hat, and ONLY that hat, for a full day, with me constantly freezing the ground beneath you, and snowing, hailing, and raining on you! All. Day. Long. This is not a joking matter, take this seriously, because the things you pack could and most like will be all you have to survive! On that note, bring at least three of everything you need! That means if you need one hat, you bring 3 hats!" RainbowDash yawned lazily and eyed the sun above us. It was getting to dusk. "I will check in on your supplies in one week! I'll speak with Rarity to see when optimal time is for entering the frozen North." I dismissed everypony. The immediately left for their respective homes, leaving Ebon and I alone as the moon rose. "Ebon..." I started to lecture him, but he cut me off rudely. "Yes, the owl was me! I apologize for letting anypony see my powers!" He lowered his head in shame, kicking at the dust weakly. "That isn't what is important, what happened that made you need a silent escape?" I grasped his shoulders and lifted his head to face me. "Oh nothing master. Just some local wildlife thought I looked delicious." He joked weakly as my eyes widened and began to feel for injuries on him. "What sort of wildlife, my son? Did it hurt you?" He saw the look of concern and anguish in my eyes and spoke without lie. "Massive wooden wolves. Like the timber wolves back home, but made of, well, timber." I finished my examination for injuries and stood up straight again, towering over the diminutive elf. "Well, it is late, Ebon. We must find a place to rest the night without fear of these creatures you describe." I waited patiently for Ebon to ponder my prompt. I often tested his problem-solving capabilities with real life situations like this. He furrowed his brow for several moments before coming to a decision. "We should ask FlutterShy for a place to stay! She always helps animals out, right? I'm more than certain she will lend us a room to rest!" I immediately knew where this conclusion was drawn from. I could sense his feelings towards FlutterShy as easily as an troll can pass gas. "Ebon, my faithful apprentice, she is a Pegasus from a world eons away from our own! Their is now way you two-" he cut me off by a mouthful of indecipherable babble at first, before clearing his throat and attempting to speak again. "I do not feel that way to FlutterShy!" He blushed as he said so, easily revealing his lie for what it was. "I... I JUST think that she would be willing to let us spend the night at her home, nothing more." I rolled my eyes before wrapping my arm around his shoulder and leading Ebon in the direction FlutterShy and Twilight Sparkle flew away to. "Of course, my friend. Of course." I said sarcastically.

Wow, that took a ridiculously long time to write! I have been working on this chapter for several days inconsistently. Anyway, there you have it! Another chapter under our metaphoric belts! I'd still like to see OC submissions if you all wouldn't mind, because I sort of lack a decent amount of OC's to accompany Drumin Fa'losk, Ebon, and the mane 6 of this expedition of theirs. leave a review, PM me, favorite and follow, if you want to of course. No pressure. /div


	6. Preparations

Hello everyone! I'll explain why I haven't updated it a long while (a week is really long to me). I have either been busy with life and all that or I have been trying to write on little ideas that keep poppping into my head and making me want to write about them. Most are stupid, but oh well I guess. Unless anyone suggests I post any of these, I won't waste your time.

Exposition :

A week had passed, and Drumin Fa'losk was not impressed with the pony's he had been able to gather. The only other pony willing to go on the expedition to the frozen north was a unicorn named Aaron Arrow, a slightly deranged fellow who was skilled with a bow. Drumin's confidence was failing once again when he saw what a certain unicorn had packed.

Present time:

"Rarity, do you not realize where we are going? You told us yourself that we are going to the Frozen North, not some winter ski lodge!" My blood began to boil as I looked through Rarity's numerous suitcases and baggage. She had packed most everything in her house, from the sofa to the manikins she used for clothes. "What?" She whined childishly " I have a lot of orders to complete, and I cannot stop my work just because I am out of town!" I groaned and put my head in my hands exasperatedly. Suddenly, an idea struck me. "Rarity," I said cooly, "you can pack all of this," her eyes lit up and she thanked me graciously. "Oh don't thank me." I said grinning, trying hard not to laugh. "Just thank the gods your muscles can lift that much!" He face changed from happiness to a look not unlike that of a deer about to be shot by a hunter. "C-c-carry this a-all?" She stammered, looking upwards to the top of the pile of bags. "Yes?" I asked, still trying not to laugh. "We can't spare anypony to lift all of your things, for they will be carrying their own equipment." Rarity swallowed and began to go through each suitcase. "What about hired help? Isn't their SOMEPONY who can help me?" She bit her lip hopefully. "Unfortunately, no. I have asked everypony who lives in ponyville if they would like to accompany us, and only Iron Rust and Aaron Arrow were compliant, and I need them to be well rested, in case we need warriors to fight away bandits or invasion, and of course Sombra himself." Rarity nodded somberly and began to unpack her luggage. "I-I understand. I will pack lighter" she started tearing up as she placed her sofa where it was suppose to be. "Good. I'll check in with you tomorrow to see what you are ACTUALLY bringing." I smiled and left the boutique. I closed the door and began to whistle a tune from home as I walked away in the direction of FlutterShy's cottage. I honestly expected her to be woefully over prepared, because her shy and frightened nature would have made her pack everything she could to keep her safe, but I was surprised at what I saw. FlutterShy was buzzing around the main room, holding a clipboard. She was commanding several woodland creatures, who were helping her gather the essentials. "My congratulations, FlutterShy! You seem to be more prepared than I!" I clapped my hands together politely, making her blush and land in front of me. "Well, I just wanted to make sure nothing was missing, so I decided to get some help from these little guys." She motioned to the animals scampering around, checking baggage. She only had two duffle bags, and a saddlebag. "I am impressed! May I see the contents of your luggage?" FlutterShy nodded cheerfully and handed me the first duffle bag. Inside was an assortment of warm weather clothing, all made of wool and several inches thick. She wouldn't get cold in those, guaranteed. "Very good FlutterShy, very good. You should be fine for clothing, assuming we make a trip to the crystal empire once or twice a month to clean our clothing and wash our bodies." I handed Fluttershy her bag as she handed me the other one. Inside that one was a wide arrangement of non perishable food and a sleeping bag, capable of keeping it's occupant alive at temperatures far below zero degrees Fahrenheit. We had bought a communal tent, so none of us needed to bring any more shelter than that. "Ten out of ten, FlutterShy! That supply of food will keep your belly full for a month at least!" She blushed once again and silently took the duffle bag from my hands. She slid the saddlebag off it's rack and opened up both sides. On one side, was a collapsable snow shovel, a large box of tinder, a tarp, a small ice pick, and a survival knife. "Good thinking, FlutterShy. The ice negated the need to pack stored water, for we only need fire to melt the ice for our own purposes." I waved my hand in the air and lit it on fire with magic. "We shouldn't need firestarters though." I laughed and extinguished my hand. "Oh, I guess you're right." She didn't seemed too offended by my criticism, and took the box of tinder out of the saddlebag and flew it into the kitchen, where she'd need it for her own oven. I turned the saddlebag around and looked in the other side. It was full of even more food, a mess kit, and a long length of thick, sturdy rope. "Well, I can see you are well prepared. I'll let you go about your business." I waved goodbye and moved on to Pinkie pie's house.

Pinkie Pie's packing was similar in size to Rarity's, but was a more... Eccentric... Choice of equipment. She packed cakes and cookies, muffins and candies, and of course, her beloved party cannon was to join her. I wasn't too happy when the party cannon went off in my face, effectively shaving my formerly well trimmed beard. I barely kept my composure as I explained to Pinkie Pie that we were going to A POSSIBLY DEADLY ENVIRONMENT, and we wouldn't need to host parties there. She looked very saddened by me making her leave her party cannon behind, but I offered my help with gathering the materials she would need, and she forgave me quite easily after that. Soon it was late afternoon, and I still didn't know what had happened to Ebon. He had disappeared that morning after FlutterShy served us both an absolutely delicious vegan breakfast. And come to think of it, FlutterShy went missing soon after I returned to her house for inspection. I called out telepathically to Ebon, searching for where his essence was currently rooted. I sensed that he was out in the forest that FlutterShy often searched for injured or sick animals in need. I took a slow stroll there, walking across PonyVille, earning many giggles and stares. The indigenous pony's were not at all used to humans and elves being around, although saying they were combative would be an overstatement. They obviously didn't want such strange creatures in their city, but they weren't up in arms to run Ebon and I out.

I reached the forest and saw FlutterShy and Ebon sharing a park bench, deep in quiet conversation. Ebon appeared to have said something bold, because FlutterShy blushed and bowed her head down. They talked for a while longer, until they said their respective goodbyes, and FlutterShy took to wing, flying in the direction of her cottage. I left my concealment and stood attentively behind Ebon as he sighed happily. "Patience, oh knight. The fairy tale isn't over yet." I teased making him whirl around and widen his eyes in fear. " W-wha.. H-How much of that did you hear?" He quiver nervously as I teasingly smile smugly. "Nothing. Nothing at all." Ebon's face turned red with anger as he began to fume. "Why you, I'll-" I interrupted him,"do a my master tells me to, under the penalty of going back to Etherial and living as a pauper for the end of time." I warned him, putting the words into his mouth. He bit his lip and bowed his head defeatedly. "I swear to the gods I heard nothing. Do not think your words were all that revealed the reason for your unannounced, and shall I say, unofficial, meeting with FlutterShy." Ebon sighed and left, with me following, laughing quietly behind him as he stomped away.

Authors note:

First of all, yes I know that not everyone who was on the expedition was checked for baggage, but Drumin Fa'losk had either previously checked their equipment or had faith that they didn't need it, despite his word to check everypony's.

I digress. So Iron Rust is an OC of my own creation, and Aaron Arrow was created by TechnoNerdDefeat. They have written a very interesting Minecraft fanfiction, and I highly recommend you check it out if you're into Minecraft as much as I!

I'll leave OC submission open, even though the expedition crew has been decided, just so I can see if I can work in any other character's into the plot.


	7. Enter The Gauntlet

Authors Note:Well, Strep throat sucks. I've been down for the count for a week, and only beginning to recover. I'll be fine in a few days though, and I'll try to be more consistent with my updates in the future!

I looked at the small group waiting nervously around me. I had finally made everyone complete their packing to my satisfaction. Ebon had been training survival skills with AppleJack and had proven useful for finding and foraging food. Pinkie Pie could carry a surprisingly enormous amount of supplies, proving her worth as a pack mule, so to speak. Rarity was also proven (slightly) useful, she was able to find many suitable places to make camp for a night, even if her standards were a little high. Twilight was of course my adviser in this whole ordeal, she would use her political power to possibly possibly pull a few strings and get us a few more pony's once we resupplied in the Crystal Empire. Iron Rust was our Reconnaissance, he would scout out our course and look for signs of King Sombra with RainbowDash. AppleJack and Pinkie Pie were going to cook and provide general maintenance for any broken equipment, although I strongly recommended that the entire group know how to maintain everything. FlutterShy would be their to talk down any Great White Bears or any animals we might anger and encounter. "C'mon!" Pinkie whined,"can't we go already?" I laughed and turned to Twilight. " last chance to call this off." I offered. "No, Sombra must be stopped, no matter what the cost." She declared and began to walk north slowly and surely. We all followed in tow closely behind.

We took the train to the Crystal Empire, where Twilight was able to recruit a buoyant teen named Mistral Paradise. She was a journalist for Equestria Daily who was investigating the rumors that King Sombra had returned from the dead. She insisted she joined us, and was fully willing to pay for her own supplies and even pay us. Twilight cautioned her to reconsider, but she would here none of it. This was her only big story since the original incident with King Sombra, and she was assigned to do whatever it took to finish the story. After several promises of fame and glory and a small bit of coin, Twilight allowed her to join, but let her keep her own money. So we had a week delay when Mistral Paradise informed her editor and prepared her own supplies.

We left the Crystal Empire and headed into the cold and Frozen North. After a week of searching, we were beginning to lose morale. I assured everyone, "this would be the last day of searching, I promise" I would say every time someone complained. The only ponies who never gave up hope were Twilight Sparkle and Mistral Paradise.

We were stumbling through a blizzard and saw an outline of an ice cave in the distance. We ran/galloped into it and hunkered down for the night. Little did we know what we were getting ourselves into.

Authors Note:

Hey everyone! I'd like to say that I apologize for the pathetic consistency of my updates, even with my many promises, none of which I have upheld. I have been thinking hard, and I'm thinking of making another continuous story. I'm thinking, MLP and Starcraft II, Like, a zerg invasion or something. PM me and give me some feedback on my idea, constructive criticism is always appreciated, even if it seems cruel. Favorite, leave a review, follow, all that good stuff.


	8. Heading home

We laid out our bedrolls for the night and lit a fire. Rarity settled in her lavish sleeping bag and placed a mask over her eyes. FlutterShy and Ebon unpacked the food and cooking materials while Iron Rust and I laid the map out across a canvas tarp. "So. We are somewhere around here." I said thoughtfully as I pointed to an area of glacial ice to the southeast of the Crystal Empire. Iron Rust nodded his head and looked at his hooves nervously. We might have had to go without food for a day or too if we continued eastbound any longer. "Everypony, gather 'round, gather 'round!" I commanded as I sat down on my bedroll laid out next to the fire pit in the ice.

"I'll bet you're all pretty tired of this cold, yes?" I laughed heartily as everyone grumbled in agreement.

"Well, I am most certain now we will need to return the the empire and restock, and possibly consider seeking Princess Celestia and Princess Luna's advice, like Mistral Paradise here was SO KIND as to point out we had forgotten in our hurry. Mistral Paradise' face turned from it's normal yellow to a bright red as she bit her lip sheepishly and looked at the frozen ground beneath her hooves.

"I'd like to ask RainbowDash and Iron Rust to return to the Empire with haste so they could give word to Princess Cadenza and possibly bring back a minimal supply of food to last us until our return, if it is safe enough for you two." I said, a challenge resonating from my inflection. RainbowDash rolled her eyes and flexed her wings determinedly.

"Oh C'mon! It's just a little wind, ain't that tough to fly!" Twilight scowled and stepped outside the tunnel and took out her device she used to gauge the pony's wing power previously. "Ummm.. RainbowDash?" Her eyebrow lifted when she saw the device' rotor rotating at an incredible speed. She bent over and read the dial as RainbowDash trotted over to see.

"525 wingpower?!" RainbowDash's eyes widened and her wigs flew open, her legs straightened and she stumbled, almost falling over. "That's insane! That's more than halfa that tornado last year!" AppleJack cocked her head in disbelief. "IF you're willing, that is." I laughed maniacally until tears froze to my eyelids. RainbowDash and Iron Rust grimaced and shook their heads at lighting speed.

Mistral Paradise opened her backpack and took out her portable camera, and began to explore the end of the ice cave, snapping photographs as she went. She got out of sight for five minutes before I started to worry.

"Ebon" I took the boys shoulder quickly and pulled him along with me. "Let's go for a walk." I commanded sternly and nodded towards the tunnels leading downward. Ebon looked around the campsite and also realize Mistral Paradise' absence and understood. His eyes squinted in exertion as he levitated his sword to him. It was a fine sword, crafted by Iron Rust vaguely similar to his own, but more reminiscent of the Gladius' design back on Earth.

It was crafted of electrum, a golden-hued, fairly soft alloy of gold and silver that had strong magical connections.

He breathed slowly and deliberately into the oak handle of the sword, small red particles entering the sword through a ruby on the end of the grip. Ebon smiled devilishly as his sword's blade lit up with blue fire, painting the ice a deeper blue than it's natural color. He nodded to me slowly and I stepped down the first tunnel leading westward and downward.

"Be quick and quiet. We do not want any more attention than necessary, given we may not be alone." I warned Ebon and drew my own steel longsword.

"Yes. of course." He whispered respectfully and began to walk more softly and quickly.

We followed the tunnel down 30 feet or so before it leveled out into a massive cavern. Strange bioluminescent animals hung from the ceiling seemingly unaffected by the cold. Suddenly, we hear the sound of clopping hooves. We both breathed a sigh or relief and turned around. What met our eyes was not at all what we expected. We saw a bright white pony with immense amounts of fur and small vestigial wings on it's back. It had two curled horns like an antelopes on it's forehead. It's insect like eyes widened as it saw us. It chirped and bellowed, an odd combination, but both echoed throughout the entire cave-system with perfect resonation. It squinted and began to cringe as a ball of blue magic floated between it's horns, growing larger and larger by the second. Ebon had the sense to run the creature through the heart before it could launch the unknown projectile. "These things do not mean us well, my apprentice! Let's get out of this place!" I yelled as I saw more shadow's appear in the ghostly light of the hanging bioluminescent animals. I pushed Ebon in front of me and followed his quick footsteps up the tunnel and towards the main entrance. hissing, clicking and chirping from the creatures made my ears ring and feel like they were going to burst. I staggered from the noise, and Ebon, seemingly unaffected, pulled me to my feet and dragged me by my arm onwards. We reached the camp, where we saw everyone save the missing Mistral Paradise, lounging around preparing for sleep.

"To arms, to arms! Gather the gear and run for your lives!" I shouted, hastily stuffing the map into my backpack. I rolled up my bedroll as the sounds grew more an more painful. The pony's flattened their ears at the noise and turned towards the tunnel curiously as Ebon and I sprinted out into the arctic storm and were almost blown over by the wind. I heard screams, magic blasts and crashing from inside the cave. Ebon and I both paled and dropped out gear in a secure snowdrift. We ran back inside the cave, swords drawn, ready to fight and saw everyone alive, even Mistral Paradise, breathing hard and sitting on dead bodies of the bizarre pony species. Purple blood oozed off Iron Rust's sword as he held it up in the air above the still-lit fire. Each drop of blood made the fire flare up a foot into the air with a sickly black tinge. Aaron Arrow pulled two arrows out of the eyes sockets of one creature as everyone regrouped around the fire, muttering in shock.

"Target's eliminated." Aaron Arrow laughed maniacally and wiped his arrows clean of blood. FlutterShy still cowered in the corner, with her bedroll held in front of her to offer protection. Ebon jogged over to her and muttered something soothingly into FlutterShy's ear. She slowly got on her hooves shakily and stumbled towards the group, Ebon holding her close.

"Well." I turned a full circle looking around the blood stained ice cave, bodies of the creatures littering the ground and our equipment.

"I suggest we leave immediately, in case those, things, multiplied." Everyone muttered in agreement save Aaron Arrow, who looked slightly saddened. "Sorry I got you guys worried, I just wanted some photos for the newspaper." Mistral Paradise grinned sheepishly and left the cave last.

Hey, that was overdue! This was a rather short and anticlimactic combat scene, but cut me some slack, since this is my first time trying serious combat like this.

Leave a review, CONSTRUCTIVE criticism is always appreciated, follow, favorite, tell your friends, tell your family, even tell a couple people you've never met before on social media. Good bye until next time.


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